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CITIL SERVICE MAillAL. 

OK 

Key to Government Appointments. 


Being copies of the Official Rules and Regulations Governing Applica¬ 
tions and Admission to the Civil Service, showing the qualification 
requisite for Positions, together with the Examination in each 
Department, Questions, etc., in full. And also valuable informa¬ 
tion pertaining to Appointments, Consuls, Special Agents, Post¬ 
masters, etc., not subject to Civil Service Rules. 



BY 

T. tDOnSTEKCTT, 

Washington, D. C. 

1878. 


o 


Price, SI, 













Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1878, by 
T. H. DONEHU, 

In the office of the Librarian of Congress, Washington, D, C. 








CIVIL SERVICE MANUAL. 


In presenting this little manual to the public the author feels sat¬ 
isfied that he eftectuallv supplies a deliciency long experienced by per¬ 
sons seeking Government situations. The information and instruction 
herein contained, and, for the first time, made public, is designed to aid 
and assist those only, who, desirous of enteiing the civil service, possess 
all the necessary qualifications of character and ability to successfully 
compete for admission, thereby relieving Members of Congress, Heads 
of Bureaus, and other officials, from the continuous annoyance of 
worthless and incompetent persons impoi'tuning for positions, whose 
capacity for same are based solely upon personal or political services 
rendered. 

Political influence, which has long been one of the chief requisites 
for obtaining and retaining positions in the public service, is, under 
the present system of civil service reform, no longer effectual. While 
the indorsement of a Senator, Member of Congress, or other high 
official, may be of service in obtaining for a candidate a designation 
before the Board, and a fair presentation of his case, it will in no 
wise influence his appointment, unless, upon examination, he is found 
duly qualified, under the rules and regulations governing admissions 
to the service, as promulgated by the President, and fully set forth in 
this little volume for the instruction and guidance of applicants. 

The plan of the apportionment of appointees among the several 
States, as recommended by the Board, is now^ being carried into effect 
in some of the Departments, and will no doubt, before the close of the 
present Administi’ation, be the established rule in all the executive 
offices of the Government, the feeling being very strong among the 
people that the appointments in said offices should be apportioned 
among the States, if not in exact proportion to population, at least in 
such a manner as to give to each section a fair proportion of the offices. 
This is as it should be, and will prove a wise and popular measure. 

The people of all sections, irrespective of party, are alike inter¬ 
ested in the financial welfare of the country, and should, therefore, have 
equal voice in the selection of the public servants, to whose faithful 
trust is confided the collection and disbursement of the vast revenues of 
the Government. 

Persons conversant with Government afiairs at Washington and 
elswhere, are aware that a very large number of the officials now^ em¬ 
ployed in the various Departments were appointed without being sub¬ 
jected to any examination whatever. They received their appointments 
either through personal favor, or as a rew^ard for political service, and. 



_ 2 _ 

in many cases, without regard to character or ability. The question is 
frequently asked, “ Why should not the Government have as efficient 
and able agents for the transaction of its business as private enterprise 
in its pursuit ?” That it has had no such resource ; that its officials, to 
an alarming extent, have been inefficient, careless, and dishonest, is a 
fact few will care to question. This originates from many causes, chief 
among which are the following: First, the pay of Government em- 
})loyees holding responsible positions is not sufficient co insure the best 
service; secondly, the tenure of office has been so insecure that it 
afforded no stimulant to efficient service ; and, thirdly, the qualifications 
for appointment were not based on character and ability, but in politF 
cal services. Government appointments have heretofore been almost 
wholly monopolized and controlled by the party in power, upon the 
principle, first inaugurated during the administration of General Jack- 
son, “to the victors belong the spoils.” Hence the great lack of 
competent and reliable agents and employees in the public service. 

It has been customary upon every change of Congress, or the 
Administration, to authorize extensive reductions in the clerical force 
of the various Departments, under the pretence of economy, retrench¬ 
ment, &c., when, in reality, the chief object and purpose of the move¬ 
ment has been to make places for political followers and favorites of the 
recently seated Members, and newly appointed Heads of Departments and 
Bureaus. The people everywhere are informed, through Congress and 
the press, of the millions saved by the vast reductions in the clerical force 
of the Departments, but learn nothing of the immediate appointment 
of an almost equal number to those discharged, of incompetent and 
inexperienced persons to fill their places, including a small army of 
“ Political Hacks,” if I may be allowed the term, wffiose only qualifica¬ 
tion for office is based on the claim that through their valuable aid- 
and influence the country, state, or district, was saved at the last 
election, and the peoples choice, the symbol of justice and right, hon¬ 
estly (?) counted in. That the Government has been a severe"loser by 
this system few will deny, such persons having rendered but very slight 
equivalent for the salaries paid them. They have taken little or no 
interest in the official duties of their positions, and were known to be 
absent attending town, county or other elections, at the expense of the 
Government, a large part of their time. Practical business men, and 
young men of integilty and mercantile ability^ such as are actually 
required in the executive offices of the Government, have seldom 
applied for positions, knowing the futility of so doing without the re¬ 
quired political influence to back them" Under the present system, 
however, such influence, unless accompanied by merit and ability, 
will avail but little. 

The rules and regulations now in force, declare that “ no person 
shall be admitted to the civil service who is not a citizen of the 
United States ; who shall not have turnished satisfactory evidence in 


— 3 — 


regard to character, health, and age; and who shall not have passed a 
satisfactory examination in speaking, reading, and loriting the English Ian- 
guage?'" 

The fair inference from these provisions is, that any citizen of 
the United States who furnishes the required evidence, and who passes 
the prescribed preliminary examination, is entitled to make application 
for admission to the service under the rules. Inasmuch, therefore, as 
women, born or naturalized within the United States, are citizens 
under the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution, and as Act of 
July 12, 1870, authorizes the appointment of “female clerks who may 
be found competent and worthy, to any of the grades of clerkships 
known to the law,” the Board considered that under the rules and reg¬ 
ulations of the civil service women are entitled to compete for admis¬ 
sion on the same terms as men. They have, therefore, been admitted to 
the examinations for clerkships of class one on the same terms as men, 
and as a consequence a large number have received appointments in 
that grade. 


Kules and Regulations 

Governing applications and examinations for appointments to clerkships of 
class one, and to all lower grades which are open to competition in the 
Executive Department of the Government, at Washington and elswhere, 
as adopted by the civil service board. 

1. Every application must be made in the handwriting of the 
applicant, and addressed to the Head of the Department in which em¬ 
ployment is desired. 

It must state applicant’s name in full, place and date of birth, 
legal residence, and how long it has been such; education, occupation 
past and present; whether ever employed in the civil service, and if so, 
when, how long, in what branch and capacity, and reasons for leaving 
the service, and whether ever in the Regular or Volunteer Army or 
iS'avy, and if so, when and in what organization and capacity. 

The application should also state the grade of clerkship to which 
the applicant desires to be appointed. 

2. Every application must be accompanied by a certificate, signed 
by two trustworthy and responsible persons, well known in the com¬ 
munity in which they reside, that the applicant is personally well known 
to them to be of good moral character, and of temporate and indust¬ 
rious habits, to being a citizen of the United States, and faithful to the 
Union and the Constitution. It must also be accompanied by the cer¬ 
tificate of a practicing physician as to the applicants health and physical 
capacity to perform clerical labor. 



— 4 — 


3. Applications for appointment tiled previous to April 16, 1872, 
must be renewed or perfected in accordance with these rules, to entitle 
them to consideration. 

4. 'No application from persons under eighteen years of age will 
be considered, except for the position of counters in the Treasury De¬ 
partment, applicants for* which must not be less than sixteen years of 
age. 

5. All applications upon their receipt will he carefully examined, 
and those which do not conform in every particular to the foregoing 
requirements, and such as show that the applicants are manifestly not 
qualified for clerical service, will be rejected. All other applicants will 
be designated as eligible for examination, and will be so notified. 

6. At least ten days prior to each examination a notification to 
appear at a time and place to be stated will be mailed to the eligible 
candidates, unless it should be found impracticable to examine all of 
them, in which case a practicable number will be selected and notified 
to appear for examination. Those not selected to appear will still 
remain on the eligible list. 

Inasmuch as applications are to be made in writing, and each case 
decided upon its merits, personal importunity will have no weight. 

7. All candidates for appointments to clerkships of class one will 
be subjected to a written examination upon the following subjects: 

Penmanship; writing and briefing letters; elements of English 
grammer, chiefly outhography and syntax; arithmetic, fundamental 
rules, fractions, percentage, interest, and discount; elements of accounts 
and book-keeping; history and geography; general questions, princi¬ 
pally such as relate to the United States, and prominent features of the 
Government of the United States. 

8. Candidates for appointment to grades below clerkships of class 
one will be examined in like manner upon the following subjects: 

Penmanship; copying; elements of English grammer, chiefly 
orthography and syntax ; and fundamental rules of arithmetic. 

9. Proficiency in penmanship, orthography and punctuation, will 
be determined principally by a review of the examination papers, and 
as far as possible the examination in all the branches wfill be confined 
to practical exercises. 

10. In examinations for appointment to positions requiring special 
technical knowledge, such additions may be made by the Board of Exam¬ 
iners to the list of subjects as the nature of the case may require. 

11. Candidates will be examined during ofilce hours, and in no 
case will their examination be continued more than one day. The 
Board of Examiners will prepare a list of the persons examined, in the 
order of their excellence, as proved by such examination, beginning 
with the highest, and will then certify to the head of the Department 
the names standing at the head of such list, not exceeding three. 




12. When more than one appointment is to be made, the vacancies 
will be numbered, and the first three names will be certified for the 
fir§t vacancy, the remaining two and the fourth for the second vacancy, 
and the remaining two and the fifth lor the third vacancy, and so on 
for the whole number of vacancies. 

13. The^ examination papers of any candidate who shall have 
passed a minimum standard of sixty yer centitm, but who shall fail to be 
appointed, will, if requested by the candidate, be brought into compe¬ 
tition with those of candidates who shall compete for vacancies of the 
same class and nature at other examinations occuring within one year. 

14. The regulations governing admissions to the Departments pro¬ 
vide for the continuous receipt of applications for admission to the 
lowest grades of clerkships, without reference to the existence of vacan¬ 
cies at the time the applications are made, and for the selection of a 
practicable number of candidates from those wdiose applications are on 
file ten days prior to an examination. 

15. The questions used in the examination are printed on sheets of 
foolscap, with sufficient blank space after each question in which to 
write the answer. The number of sheets usually employed is eleven, 
and is intended as a practical test of efficiency at the desk, the whole 
being about equal to a fair days work in an office. 

16. Upon completing the answers to the questions, the candidate 
should note on the paper the exact time he has been engaged upon it 
This is required in order to determine the relative readiness of candi¬ 
dates in different branches of the examination, and is sometimes used 
as a guide in assigning them to duty in the Department. 

17. The character of the questions on each sheet is as follows : 

Upon the fimt sheet the candidate is required to write a brief per¬ 
sonal history of himself, embracing his full name, date, and place of 
birth, education, 'and subsequent experience in business or profession. 

The second sheet contains about eight or ten exercises in arithme¬ 
tical numeration and notation. 

The third sheet contains two exercises in simple addition, consist¬ 
ing of two columns of figures, each extending to millions. 

The fourth, fifth, and sixth sheets contain six or seven miscel¬ 
laneous exercises in arithmetical computation, and include questions in 
common fractions, decimal fractions, percentage or discount, interest, 
calculation of customs duties, purchase or sale of U. S. Bonds, and 
conversion of gold into currency or currency into gold. [The Optra- 
iion must be given at length in each case.) 

The seventh sheet contains a simple exercise in the statement of 
an account. 

The eight sheet is devoted to a few general questions in history, 
government, and geography, and relate principally to the United 
States. 


— 6 — 


The ninth sheet contains an exercise in the correction of false 
orthography and punctuation, being an extract of moderate difficulty 
from some standard work, or from an official report; a portion of the 
words being misspelled, and the punctuation marks misplaced. The 
candidate is simply required to correct the mistakes in orthography and 
punctuation witliout otherwise altering the words or their order. 

The tenth sheet consists in the correction of eiglit or ten simple 
examples of false syntax, interspersed, it may be, with a few correct 
sentences 

The candidate is not asked whether he knows anything about the 
formal rules of grammer, but is simply tested as to his ability to use 
the English language correctly, or what is substantially the same, to 
detect its incorrect use. 

The eleventh and last sheet—the letter and brief. The candidate 
is merely required to write a letter of a prescribed length upon a set 
subject, or upon one chosen by himself, and to fold and brief it. 

In accordance with the scale of relative weight adopted, the 
Board of Examiners, in granting certificates, attach the greatest weight 
to the indispensable requisites, such as penmanship, arithmetic, orthog¬ 
raphy and syntax. Special qualifications for particular kinds of duty, 
such as book-keeping, letter-writing, and briefing, being assigned a less 
weight in the scale. 

It is a well-known fact that many really capable and worthy per¬ 
sons are and have been deterred from seeking admission to the civil 
service simply from a want of confidence in their ability to pass the 
required examination; beleiving that the possession of a collegiate or 
academic education was necessary in order to successfully compete. 
This is a very grave error, and has, no doubt, occasioned the non acquisi¬ 
tion to the service of many valuable and efficient clerks. Such error 
is clearl}' proven by the official report of the Board of Examiners, which 
shows that fully two-thirds of the successful candidates competing, 
received but a common school education. Many again have applied, 
and receiving their designation, have failed in their examination, not 
from lack of ability on their part to answer the questions, but simply 
from want of that coolness and composure so requisite upon such an 
occasion. Being of timid or nervous temperaments, and having been 
kept in utter ignorance as to the extent and drift of the examination 
(as candidates are seldom ^ven more than one sheet at a time) they 
'completely lose their heads in the apprehension and excitement of the 
moment. Had they received, previous to presenting themselves before 
the Board, some little insight as to the character of the examination 
and tenor of the questions likely to be propounded, they would have 
sat down to their work with a much steadier nerve, and the result no 
doubt would have proven difterent in many cases. For the guidence 
and instruction, therefore, of all those desireous of making application 
to be placed on the eligible list of candidates for appointment in any 
of the various bureaus or offices of the Government, I here give an 


7 — 


official series of the examinations, as obtained from official sources, 
and questions embodied therein will be found to be the same as are 
now being used in the examinations of candidates for positions in the 
several Government Departments. This information has never before 
been imparted to the public, either inside or outside of the offices, 
and will prove to be invaluable not only to those seeking admission 
to the civil service, but also to persons of all classes now in office, and 
who may hereafter desire to compete for promotion. 


EXAM^ATION PAPERS FOR ADMISSION AND PROMO¬ 
TION IN EACH DEPARTMENT. 

ff 

Admission to Fill Vacancies in the Grade of Female Clerics at $900 a Year. 


Treasury Department. 


Sheet 1.— 

1. Name and Address. 

2. Residence. 

3. Place of birth. 

4 Date of birth. 

5. State briefly as to your education. 

6. What experience in business or profession. 

7. What experience as a clerk. 

Sheet 2. — Arithmetical. 

8. Write in figures the following numbers: 

Thirty thousand and twenty-one. 

Three hundred and one thousand and six. 

Five hundred and seventy-two millions six hundred and one. 

9. Write at length the numbers expressed by the following figures: 

307,003. 

2,706,103. 

572,601,300. 

25,601. 

Note.— The answers must be given immediately under the questions to 
which they pertain. 

Sheet 3.— 

10. Add the following columns of figures: 


$311,538 83 
194,572 32 
14,709 46 


$118,248 30 
92,718 50 
150,476 14 



— 8 - 


118,248 30 
92,718 50 
150,476 14 


103,880 82 
149,004 15 
175,111 81 
193,636 59 
269,803 41 
315,022 36 
205,217 87 
379,558 23 
384,720 19 
445,485 18 
464,546 52 
427,124 98 
337,032 62 


Sheet 4.— 

11. How long will it take one hundred ladies to count ^3,000,000 
in fractional currency, one-third of which is in notes of the denomina¬ 
tion of 50 cents, one-third in 25 cents, and the remaining third in 10 
cent notes, if each lady counts at the rate of 50 notes per minute ? 

12. The Treasury Department purchased 756 reams of foolscap- 
paper, for which it paid |1,784.16 ; 672 reams of letter-paper, for 
$1,518.72; and 345 reams of note-paper for $741.75. What did the 
whole cost, and how much was paid per ream for each kind ? 

13. How many dollars in greenbacks can fifty presses print in one 
hour, if each press prints 30 impressions of paper per minute, and each 
impression contains 12 notes of the denomination of $5 ? 

{Sheets 5, 6, ana 7 are omitted in this grade.) 

Sheet 8. —Orthography and Punctuation. 

14. Copy the following passage, clearly and legibly, correcting 
mistakes in spelling and punctuation, but not otherwise altering either 
the words or their order: 

The most evidant cause of superior productiveness is what are 
called natural advantigis. These are varius, fertillaty oft* soil is won 
of the principle, in this their are great varietys, from the deserts of 
arabia to the alluvial planes of the gauges the niger and the misissippi. 
a favorable climate is even more importent than a ritch soil, their air 
countrees capable of being inhabited butt to cold to be cornpatable 
with agriculchur. Their inhabitents can not pass beyond the nomadic 
stait; they must live like the laplanders by the domestication of the 
rainedeer if not by hunting or fishing like the miserable esquimaux. 
there are countrees whare oats will ripen, but not wheat sutch as the 
north of Scotland; others whare wheat can be geoan but from excess of 
moyschure oftbrds but a precarius crop as in parts of Ireland. 




— 9 — 


Sheet 9. — Syntax. 

Copy the following sentences, and correct such as contain errors in 
syntax : 

Not one of the ladies knew what they were to do. 

That desk is the smallest of the two. 

More than a year has elapsed since the organization of the system. 

It is not practicable to dispense with the services, neither of the 
counter nor the copyist. 

Our public debt as well as tinances are under the control of the 
Treasury Depanment. 

The Attorney-Generals opinions are given in writing. 

Taxes are either direct or indirect 

Who is the Supervising Architect appointed by ? 

The work was did remarkably well. 

No one can make a good copyist unless they are careful. 

Sheet 10.— 

Copy the following passage, talcing care to write as well as you can : 

Let us suppose in any country a circulating medium purely metal- 
% lie, and a sudden casual increase made to it; for example, by bringing 
into circulation hoards of treasure, which had been concealed in a 
previous period of foreign invasion or internal disorder. The natural 
effect would be a rise of prices. This would check exports and encour¬ 
age imports; the imports would exceed the exports, the exchanges 
would become unfavorable, and a newly-acquired stock of money 
would diffuse itself over all countries with which the supposed countiy 
carried on trade, and from them, progressively, through all facts of the 
commercial world. The money which thus overflowed would spread 
itself to an equal depth over all commercial countries. For it would 
go on flowing until the exports and imports again balanced one another; 
and this (as no change is supposed in the permanent circumstance of 
international demand) could only be, when the money had diffused 
itself so equally that prices had risen in the same ratio in all countries, 
so that the alteration of price would be for all practical purposes inef¬ 
fective, and the exports and imports, though at a higher money valua¬ 
tion, would be exactly the same as they were originally. This dimin¬ 
ished value of money throughout the world (at least if the diminutive 
was considerable) would cause a suspension, or at a diminution, of the 
annual supply from the mines, since the metal would no longer com¬ 
mand a value equivalent to its highest cost of production. The annual 
waste would, therefore, not be fully made up, and the usual causes of 
destruction would gradually reduce the aggregate quantity of tlie pre¬ 
cious metals to its former amount; after which their production would 
recommence on its former scale. The discovery of the treasure would 
thus produce only temporary effects. 


10 — 


Sheet 11.— Transcribing from, rough draught. 

17. Make a fair copy of the following rough draught of a letter, 
writing correctly and neatly, and writing out all abbreviations at lull 
length: 

(The rough draught being photo-lithographed, it is not practicable 
to reproduce it here.) 

Kote on each sheet the exact time engaged upon it. In questions 
in arithmetic, the operation must be shown at length in each case. 


Treasury Department. 
Examination for Admission, 


Sheet 1.— 

1. ITame ? 

2. Kesidence? 

3. Place of birth ? 

4. Date of birth ? 

5. State briefly as to jour education. 

6. What subsequent experience in business or profession ? 

7. What clerical experience ? 

Sheet 2.— Arithmetical. 

8. Write in figures the following numbers: 

Thirty-two thousand and sixty. 

Four millions two thousand and six. 

Six hundred and one millions twenty-five thousand, three hun¬ 
dred and one and decimal eleven hundred-thousandths; 

9. Write at length the numbers expressed by following figures^ 

301.500 

231,607.005 

506.002,5 

249,064.000,01 



Sheet ^.— Tido exercises in simple Addition. 
3,764,078,795 
10,974,113,410 
20,946,421,525 
30,922,681,342 
26,602,753,743 


19,108,758,941 

15,835,646,086 

31,153,383 

19,457,232 

2,470,946 

11,824,830 

9,271,850 

15,047,614 


3,764,078,795 

10,974,113,410 

20,946,421,525 

30,922,681,342 

26,602,753,743 

19,108,758,941 

15,835,646,086 

31,153,383 

19,457,232 

2,470,946 

11,824,830 

9,271,850 

15,047,614 

10,388,082 

14,900,415^ 

17,511,181 

19,363,659 

26,980,341 

31,502,236 

20,521,787 

37,955,823 

38,472,019 

44,548,518 

46,454,652 

42,712,49g 

33,703,262 

31,578,347 




Sheet 4.— 

11. The standard gold dollar of the United States contains nine 
parts of pure gold and one part of alloy, an4 weighs 25.8 grains troy. 
How many grains of gold and alloy, respectively, are required for the 
coinage of 6,983 gold dollars ? 

12. The Ordnance Department sold at public auction 12,750 con¬ 
demned Springfield muskets at $12.37J each, the original cost of which 
was $14.75 each; 3,075 sabers at $3.87J each, which cost $5.31^ each; 
and 100,000 rounds of cartridges for $5,000, the original cost being 
$1.25 per 100 rounds. What was the total original cost, and what was 
the amount realized ? 

Sheet 5.— 

13. ‘The duty on spool thread of cotton, containing 100 yards to 
the spool, is 6 cents per dozen spools, and in addition thereto 30 per 
cent, ad valorem (or upon the value.) What is the amount chargeable 
on 11,153 spools, valued at 3 cents a spool. 

14. A transport was hired to carry 315 tons of Government stores 




— 12 — 


from New York to Charleston, at the rate of $3.3125 per ton per month. ! 
The vessel left New York at 2 o’clock, August 16, 1871, and reached 
Charleston on the 21st of the same month at 11 o’clock a. m. How 
much pay was due, allowing 30 days to the month ? 

15. What time is required for $25,250 to gain $5,162.22f, at the 
rate of 8 per cent, interest per annum, reckoning 360 days to the year? 
Sheet 6.— 

16. A paymaster made the following payments to the regiments of 
a brigade, to wit, to the first regiment $10,000 ; to the second, $9,500 ; 
and to the third, $8,572.62. Of these amounts $2,500, $2,275, and 
$1,850 were respectively suspended for informalities in the vouchers. 
What was the per cent, of suspensions in each payment, and on the 
total amount paid ? 

17. Calvin Hale paj^s $7,350 in currency for Indian goods worth 
$6,345, at gold prices. "What is the premium on gold; what is gold 
worth in currency ; and what is currency worth in gold ? 

Sheet 7.— Accounts. 

18. Thomas Jones is a disbursing officer of the United States* 
January 1, 1872, there was advanced to him $6,000; on April 1,1872? 
$2,500 ; on May 15, 1872, $1,761; and on June 1, 1872, $550.59. He 
has made disbursements to the amount of $10,156; on $5,000 he is 
entitled to a commission of f per cent.; on $3,000 to a commission of 
I per cent, and on the remainder to a commission of 1 per cent. State 
the account of the United States with Thomas Jones in the form-be¬ 
neath. 


Sheet 8. — History, Government and Geography. 

19. During what war did the battle of Buena Vista take place? 

20. What Amarkmt-irenera! was killed at the battle of Bunker 

Hill ? ^ 

21. When and where did General Kobert E. Lee surrender? 

22. What is the highest judicial tribunal in the United States? 

23. When is the electoral vote cast ? 

24. Where is the Island of San Juan ? 

25. Name the States and Territories lying on the northern frontier 
of the United States, extending from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean. 

26. In the following list, state which are sea-ports and which in¬ 
land cities: Boston, Tallahassee, Baton Rouge, Richmond, .Syracuse, 
Detroit and Cleveland. 

Sheet 9. — Orthography and Punctuation. 

27. Now if the revival of the english nashunality had meant the 
expulshun of the dominent normal! race. This would" verry probably 


% 













— 13 — 


have bin, the course taken And tlie reactshun would have put under a 
common ban langwidge and institushuns alike, But happily it meant 
know sutch thing it meant the blending of the two races into one; 
the forming of a new english nashun, by the gradyoual coalishun of the 
two by the growing consciousness that this england was the equil herit¬ 
age ot both. The wellfare of which was the kommon interest of both ; 
it was not on either side a tryumph, but where under these circumstances 
should a 6uply of the new necesitys be so naturally look for as from the 
Irench—That was thedangwidge of one of the parties in this happy 
transaction, of the one which in respect of langwidge was giving up for 
the most and which therefore might fairly look for this parshal com- 
pensashun. 

Sheet 10.— Syntax. 

28. Copy the following sentences and correct such as contain errors 
in syntax. 

Wisdom and not wealth procure esteem. 

I would not act thus if I was him. 

Which is the prettiest of the two ? 

A just man will deal justly, and a foolish man will act foolishly. 

Milton is an Author who I am much delighted with. 

IS'either John or eJames will send their books. 

It is etiquette not to set down in the presence of royalty. 

The world government is not left to chance. 

Sheet 11.— The Letter and Brief. 

Write a letter of about one page, addressed to the head of the ])e- 
partment in which you seek an appointment, giving the date and place 
of jour birth, your present legal residence and post office address, and 
a statement of your education and of your occupation to the present 
time, especially such as in your opinion have tended to fit you for a 
clerkship under Government. Sign the letter with your full name, 
fold it and indorse upon it a summary or brief of its contents. This 
oxercise is designated to show your skill in simple English composition. 


Post Office Department. 

Examimtion for admission to Jill vacancies in clerkships of Class One. 
Sheet 1.— 

1. What is your full name ? 

2. Where and when were you born ? 

3. Of what State or Territory are you a citizen ? 

4. What was the nature of your education ? 

5. In what profession or business have you been engaged? 



— 14 — 


Sheet 2.— Grammar. 

1. Write a letter, addressed to the Postmaster General, consisting 
of not more than two pages nor less than one full page, upon any sub¬ 
ject you may consider suitable to exhibit your skill in plain English 
composition. Sign the letter, fold it, and indorse upon the back a 
summary of its contents. 

[N’ote. —From this letter, principally, the board of examiners will 
judge of your proficiency in orthography and punctuation; but errors in 
those branches found anywhere in the examination-papers will betaken 
account of, and for each error in orthography, jive units will be deducted 
from the final result of the examination. Errors in punctuation will de¬ 
tract from the value to be assigned to the answers in which they may 
be formed in proportion to the importance of the errors. 

Sheet 3.— Syntax. 

1. Is the following correct? If not, wherein does its incorrectness 
consist? “I hoped to have seen you.” 

2. What number must the verb be in when two or more singular 
subjects are taken together? 

3. Write an incorrect sentence, point out the error, and explain 
why it is such. 

Correct the sentences following that are incorrect: 

4. Both were unfortunate, but neither are to blame, 

5. Who do you charge with the crime ? 

6. Who was you speaking to when I came in ? 

7. He learns me grammar, but neither of us speak English correct, 

8. Wisdom and folly govern us. 

9. There comes three persons, either of which accomplish with ease 
what you propose. 

10. I, they, and you, having completed your studies, it becomes us 
to be as they are respected by all for their virtues. 

Sheet 4.— Arithmetic. 

1. Write in figures the following numbers : 

One million one hundred and eleven thousand and two and 
decimal one thousand one hundred and one millionths, 

2. W rite in words the following figures: 

263,478,978.000,346,9 


— 15 


Sheet 5.— 

3. Add the following figures: 


26,342,981 

82 

87,068,562 

04 

63,572,386 

50 

49,682,463 

05 

76,483,879 

45 

89,572,341 

06 

47,826,121 

80 

74,623,112 

45 

67,472,809 

63 

643,752 

05 

847,962 

45 

206,468 

65 

784,962 

37 

536,487 

94 

■ 683,548 

75 

468,684 

57 

372,890 

45 

683,570 

46 

736,683 

64 

678,386 

41 


Sheet 6.— 

In the following examples give the whole work; 

4. What is the sum of the following fractions : 

11 5 

i 8 ’ 4, ¥5 6 ’ 9 ^ 

5. What is the interest on $760.89 for nine months and twenty 
days, at 5 per cent, per annum ? 

6. At the rate of 10 per cent, per annum, (360 days to the year,) 
what time will it require for $24,000 to gain $208J ? 

7. If $ 664 . 20 g 2 _o_ gold will pay a note of $763 in currency, what is 
the premium on gold ? 

8. By act of March 3, 1873, the pound sterling is declared to be 
equal to $4.8665. What amount of United States coin would it require 
to pay a debt of £780 18s lid ? 

Sheet 7.— Bookkeeinng. 

John Waters, postmaster at Ralston, on July 1,1872, had a credit- 
balance of $74.58 due from the United States. On the 10th of July he 
received from the Department postage-stamps amounting to $854; on 
July 15th he collected a dral’t for $940 on the postmaster at Sacksville; 
on August 2d he paid a contractor his dues for the previous quarter’s 
service, less a fine of $28.75 for neglect of duty, on a route upon which 
the compensation was $980 per annum ; on the 7th of August he paid 
a draft on him for $462.37; on September 30th he paid his own salary 



— 16 — 


for the quarter, rated at $1,800 per amium; also the quarterly salaries 
of three route-agents, at $900 per annum each. During the quarter he 
collected $9.75 on unpaid letters, $8.75 on newspaper-postages, and 
$75.34 for box rents. State his account with the United States, in 
proper form, for the quarter ended September 30, 1872. 

Sheet 8. — History, Geography and Government. 

1 . For what length of time did General Harrison hold the office of 
President of the United States ? Give the date of his death. 

2. When did President Lincoln issue his first proclamation for 
troops to suppress the rebellion, and for what number did he call ? 

3. When did General Grant’s army enter Kichmond ? 

4. ^^Tame the States that do not border on the ocean, gulf, or great 
lakes. 

5. Hame the States crossed by the meridian of Washington. 

6 . What are the three principal mountain-systems of the United 
States ? 

7. In what two cases only may the writ of habeas ccnrpus be sus¬ 
pended ? 

8 . What is the subject of the fifteenth amendment to the Consti¬ 
tution ? 


Department of Justice. 

Questions propounded to candidates for admission as clerks of Class One. 
Sheet 1.— 

The candidate will write a letter, directed to the Attorney General 
applying for a position in this Department, and giving a short account 
of his education and past life, the letter to be not less than a page and 
a half nor more than three pages long, of letter paper. 

Sheet 2.— Sentences to be corrected. 

Between you and I, there is no truth in the report. 

William has broke the chair. 

I learned him how to do it. 

My Christian and surname begin and end with the same letter. 
The man is neither great or good. 

There’s the book you wanted. 

I am not so good a scholar as him. 

They have done much more than us. 

He has ran from the house into the garden. 

When I was as young as her I could sing better than her. 

The man called on me agreeable to promise. 

It was him who you consider your fi'iend. 

A man ought to live suitable to his station. 


i 



— 17 — 


Every one of those boy are idle. 

Neither William nor John were present. 

Seven and five is twelve and four is sixteen. 

Sheet 3.— Arithmetical, 

1. In the reduction of <£s (English currency) to shillings, which is 
the multiplier and which the multiplicand ? 

2. What is the rate per cent, on an investment of 7 per cent, stock 
at 12J per cent, discount? 

3. Express decimally. 

4. Find the sum of two and twenty-five thousandths, five and 
twenty-seven ten thousandths, forty-seven and one hundred and twenty- 
six millionths, one hundred and fifty and seven-tenths. 

5. Divide 6 by .005. 

6. I have $947.86 and wish to remit to London £364 18s 8d, ex¬ 
change being 84 per cent.; how much more money do I need ? 

7. What is ratio ? 

8. What is cancellation and its eflect? 

9. Divide 714,394,756 by 1,754. 

Sheet 4. — Example in simple addition, same as Sheet 3, Treasury. 
Sheet 5.— 

1. A merchant buys goods amounting to $2,965 and loses 15 per 
cent, by damage ; what is his loss ? 

2. I of 48 is f of how many times 9 ? 

3. What is the analysis of a proposition ? 

4. What is decimal currency ? 

5. What is the unit of French money, and what is its value in 
American money? 

6. If a stack 10 feet high has 2 tons of hay, how high is a similar 
one of 16 tons ? 

7. What is proportion ? 

Sheet 6.— Questions in Bookkeeping. 

1874. Memoranda: John Jones, Grocer. 

Jan. 11. Began business with cash, $3,500. 

“ Bot. 110 bbls. flour at $8. 

“ 12. Sold Colt & Wilson 20 bbls. at $8.50, cash. 

“ Pd for set of books, $15. 

‘‘ 13. Bot. of William Gray 10 bales cotton on account, $1,000. 

“ 14. Sold Spencer & Bro. 50 bbls. flour, at $10. 

“ 15. Bot. of G. Jones 95 bbls. flour, at $9. 

‘‘ 16. Bot. 10 bags Rio, $70. 

18. Repair of store, $15. 

<< ‘‘ Bot. 10 bbls. sugar, at 20 cents, (200 lbs. each.) 

“ 19. Pd dray age, $3. 

« « P(^ Wm. Gray on account, $200. 

« 20. Sold factory, 9 bales cotton, $1,200. 


— 18 — 


“ 21. Sold Brown & Son 40 bbls. flour, at $10.50. 

‘‘ 22. Sold Packard 8 bbls. sugar on account, at 22 cts. 

“ 23. Sold factory 65 bbls. flour, at $10. 

‘‘ 25. Received from Rockwell on account, $150. 

“ 26. Sold Spencer k Bro. 10 bbls. flour, at $10. 

“ 27. Sold Brown & Son 5 bags Rio, $65. 

‘‘ 28. Pd Wm. Gray on account, $750. 

‘‘ 29. Pd clerk to Feb. 1, $30. 

“ 30. Pd rent to Feb. 1, $66. 

‘‘ “ Bot. bhd. bacon, $410. 

Make inventory mchdse. unsold Jan. 31, 1874, at rates of sales. 
Make balance account indicating ‘‘resources,” “liabilities,” and 
“gain.” 


Department of the Interior. 

Examination for admission to fill vacancies in clerkships of Class One, 

(Sheets 1, 2 and 3 are the same as shown in Examination No. 1, 
for admission to Treasury Department, with the exception of some 
slight change in the figures or numbers.) 

Sheet 4.— Arithmetical. 

11. What is a pile of wood 15 feet long, 10J feet high,'and 12 
feet wide worth, at $4 50 per cord ? 

12. Find the interest on $419.10 for 1 year, 8 months, and 15 days, 
at 6 per cent., and also at 8 per cent, per annum. 

13. Multiply 874.0691 by 79.0473. 

Sheet 5.— 

14. Divide 1979 by 11.225, and divide 127.555 by 63. 

15. Find a common divisor of 72 and 90. 

16. 2J cents is what per cent, of 10 cents ? 

17. 10 cents is what per cent, of 2J cents ? 

Sheet 6.— 

18. If seven men can mow a field in 19 days, in how many days 
will 20 men mow it ? 

19. Wliat is the gold value of a currency dollar when gold is 13 
per cent, premium ? 

20. Reduce 7| to a decimal. 

Sheet 7.— 

21. Add fl- to If. 

22. Substract f from .97. 

23. Divide f of by f of 

Sheet 8. — History, Government and Geography. 

24. Define the several kinds of Government. Which kind is ours ? 


i 



— 19 — 


25. Name the thirteen original States. 

26. How many States and Territories in the United States ? 

^ 27. What is the process of amending the Constitution of the 

United States ? 

28. What is the mode of electing a President of the United States ? 

29. When was the Constitution of the United States adopted, and 
how ? 

30. How is each State represented in the House of Eepresentatives 
in Congress, and how in the Senate ? and give a reason for the differ¬ 
ence. 

31. Name the co- 0 ”dinate branches of our Government; in which 
branch is the patronage of the Government principally vested ? 

32. Why is the appointment and removal of the heads of Depart¬ 
ments and Bureaus vested in the President of the United States ? 

33. What is the difference between geography and geology ? 

34. Give the latitude and longitude of Washington, New York 
City and San Francisco. 

35. What State has the greatest area in square miles? What 
State has the smallest ? What State has the largest population ? 
What is the population of the United States ? 

Sheet 9. — Orthography and Paneiuation. 

36. Copy the following and correct the Orthography and Punctua¬ 
tion : 

In february 1631 a puritan mineaster arived in new england by the 
name of roger williams, he was as yet scarcely thurty years of aige he 
was a man of some enlitened views but his temper was not propperly 
disciplined he Was however an ardant friend of liberty, and a fo too 
every form of legal intolerance he wus at furst paster of a church in 
Salem here having advanced the oppinion that a commonwealth is 
bound to Protect all denominashuns of Christians rather more boldly 
than was acceptible to the Massachusetts government and having also 
anounced some strainge oppinions with an over hairing spirrit he was 
tried for herecy and wus sentenced to leave the province. 

Sheet 10.— Syntax. 

37. Correct the following sentences: 

The inquisitive and curious is generally talkative. 

True rhetoric and sound logic is very near allied. 

Rebecca took goodly raiment and put them on Jacob. 

Neither Roman or Saxon have added anything to his categories. 

The chasm was twenty feet broad. 

These sort of fellows are very numerous. 

Where are you going at ? 

Wisdoms precept’s forms the good mans happiness. 

Sheet 11.— Letter and brief. 

Write a letter addressed to the head of the Bureau in which you 


20 — 


desire an appointment, covering at least two pages of paper, giving 
place of your birth, a history of education, your occupation to the 
present time, your legal residence, and the reasons why you seek an 
appointment. Fold it neatly and brief it. 


Patent Office. 

Examination for Third Assistant Examiner, 

(Number the answers consecutively; write on one side only of the 
sheet; sign your name to each page.) 

1. What is a patent ? 

2. Who may obtain a patent in this country ? 

3. For what purpose are patents granted, and what have been the 
eftects of the system in this country ? 

4. When were railroads first introduced into the United States, 
and what has been their effect upon the industries and general develop¬ 
ment ? 

5. What was the original and what the acquired territory of the 
United States, and how and when acquired ? 

6. Name and bound the dependencies of Great Britain. 

7. What are the powers of the State, and what of the General 
Government ? 

8. What wars have been fought by the United States, and what 
were the general cause of those wars ? 

9. Name the co-ordinate branches of the Government, and define 
their respective powers and duties. 

10. What were the great powers of Europe in the reign of Queen 
Elizabeth of England, and what important wars were carried on ? 

11. What are the difierent races of men, and what the various 
forms of government ? 

12. Describe a galvanic battery. 

13. What is fire ? 

14. What are the distinctive quantities of metals ? What metals 
can you name ? 

15. What are the principal forces used by man to produce mechan¬ 
ical results? 

16. What are the mechanical uses of water in its various forms, 
and upon what qualities do its various uses depend ? 

17. What is air, and what are its uses ? 

18. Suppose a tree 100 feet in height be broken off by the wind, 
and that the top of the tree strikes the ground 40 feet from its base, 
while the other end of the part broken oft’ rests on the top of the stump. 
Required the length of the part broken oft*. 

19. A log of wood is 15 inches broad and 11 thick; what length 

of it will make 10 cubic feet ? ° 




— 21 — 


20. A garden 500 feet long and 400 feet broad is surrounded by,a 
terrace-walk, the surface of which is one-eighth of that of the garden; 
what was the breath of the walk ? 


JSTavy Department.— ' No . 1. 

Examination for admission to fill vacancies for clerkships in Class One. 

Sheet 1.— 

Xanie. 

Residence. 

Place and date of birth. 

Brief statement as to your education. 

What experience in business or profession ? 

What clerical or other experience in Government service ? 

Sheet 2. — Arithmetical. 

Write in figures the following numbers : 

Twenty-four millions and six and decimal forty-two thousandths. 
Kine hundred and six millions two hundred thousand and one and 
decimal six hundred-thousandths. 

Write in words the numbers expressed by the following figures: 

2,308.3051 .97500 

Express in decimal form by figures: 7 yoVoo- 
Express by figures: Seventy-nine million two thousand and six 
hundred five-thousandths. 

Ten thousand five hundred and five millions. 

Sheet 3.— 

Examples in simple addition^ same as given in Sheet 3, Treasury. 

Mill tipi V the following figures : 

$896,745.54 

726,047.86 


Sheet 4.— 

1. A clerk agreed for a house as follows: 

To pay the contractor 3 per cent, profit on the cost of the mate¬ 
rials, and 4J per cent profit on the cost of the labor, and was himself 
to be allowed 3J per cent, on the total cost of the materials and labor 
in consideration of prompt cash payment. The materials used were 
132,000 bricks, at $12.54 per thousand; 64,846 feet of lumber, at 3 
cents per foot; paint and other articles, $1,846.24. The labor cost one- 
quarter as much as the materials. What did the clerk pay for the 
house, what did the contractor receive, and what was the contractor’s 
profit ? 

2. A paymaster had on hand $8,345.24, and received from sale of 






— 22 — 


condemned stores |1,379.83J. lie paid for advertising $120,372 and 
deposited in the Treasury $3,076.48. On being relieved he transterred 
one-third of the public funds in his hands to his successor, and divided 
the remainder between two other paymasters (A and B) in such man¬ 
ner that A received twice as much as B. IIow much did A and B 
receive respectively ? 

3. June 20, 1869, John Jones bought six acres of ground for $375 
per acre, borrowing money for that purpose at 8 per cent. 

On the 2d of July, 1872, he sold one-third of it for $400 per acre, 
and the residue for $475 per acre. Bid he gain dr lose, and how 
much ? 

4. What sum should be paid at interest at 10 per cent, to amount 
to $1,260 in 1 year 6 months and 9 days ? 

5. What sum in double millreis of Brazil is equal to $123,036 at 
$1.0253 per double millrei ? 

Sheet 5.— 

6. Government purchased 96 acres of land, at $41.34J per acre f 
185 acres, at $53.42^ per acre; and 36 acres, at $l3.14f per acre- 
What was the area of the land, what its cost, and what the average 
price per acre ? 

7. A clerk had an income of $1,100 per annum; he pays 10 per 
cent, of it for board, J per cent for washing, 2 per cent, for incidantals, 
15 per cent, for clothing, 9 per cent, for other expenses, and loses in 
various ways 50 per cent, of the amount then remaining. What does 
each item cost, what amount does he lose, and what sum does he have 
left ? 

8. Make up for John Jones, disbursing agent of the United States, 
in the form annexed (see sheet 7, Treasury,) his account-current for 
the quarter ending Bee. 31,1872 ; his transaction having been as follows: 

Bue United States per account of previous quarter $2,846.72; 
received on Treasury warrant, October 12, $3,000; disbursed in Octo¬ 
ber, $2,764.10, on which he was entitled to a commission of one-quarter 
of one per cent.; received November 17, on Treasury warrant, $2,826.- 
40 ; disbursed in November and Becember, $5,672.44, on which he was 
entitled to a commission of 2 per cent.; and deposited Becember 31, 
balance due to the credit ot the United States. 

Sheet 6.— History, Government and Geography. 

1. When and where did Washington resign his commission ? 

2. Where, and in what year, was the United States frigate Chesa¬ 
peake boarded by the Leopard for the impressment of seamen ? 

3. The United States are now in what year of their independence ? 

4. When did the Constitution of the United States go into opera¬ 
tion ? 

5. What is treason against the United States, and what is necessary 
to convict a person thereof? 

6. In choosing a President of the United States by the House of 



— 23 — 


Representatives, to bow many votes would the State of New York be 
entitled ? 

7. Through what States would a line pass if drawn directly from 
New York to New Orleans ? 

8. Name the States and Territories of the United States bordering 
on Mexico. 

9. Where is the island of St. Helena ? 

Sheet 7.— Syntax. 

Write out the following sentences, making any corrections that 
may be necessary : 

1. Who servest thou under? 

2. All friendships between you and I are severed, 
i 3. Every one should know his duty. 

I 4. Is that him who you were speaking of ? 

■ 5. Your note, with its inclosures, have been referred to the Bureau, 

agreeable to your request. 

6. The ship rode out the storm beautifully. 

7. Neither your letter or its accompaniments have any bearing on 
the subject. 

i 8. I speak now of John Q. Adams, the greatest orator of the two; 
he who died in the Capitol. 

9. If thy hand or foot offend thee, cut them off and cast them 
from thee. 

Sheet 8.-—Orthography and Functuation. 

Copy the following passage clearly and legibly, correcting mistakes 
; in orthography and punctuation, but not otherwise altering the words 
: or their order : 

i There is however a much more palperble violation of grammer. 

! In the use of the virb was it fall upon a grammatical ear like a hid- 
deous discord in waying such expressions. We must devest ourselves off 
every vestage of reverance; for meer names poets orroters historyans 
critticks wUen .throne into the gramatical crusabel come out simply as 
men. Striped off all adventicious orniments you was instead of you 
were in point of perpriaty stands on a par with thou were the orthoraty 
of addison. In matters of grammar of bently who evadently never 
maid english grammer his studdy of boiling broke pope and others is 
as nothing short of universal addoption before which all must bow can 
ever sancsion the expression. You was, it can find no refuge but in 
ignorence or silly efectation. 

Sheet 9.— Letter and brief. 

Write a letter of one or two pages, on a given subject or one 
selected by yourself—fold and brief it. 

Navy Department. —No. 2. 

Sheets 1, 2 and 3 same (with very little variation) as sheets 1, 2 
and 3, Treasury Department. 




— 24 — 


4th, 5th, 6th and 7th consolidated.— Arithmetic. 

If a paymaster receives $150,000 from the Treasury, and fails to 
account for $225 thereof, what is tlie per centage of loss to the Govern¬ 
ment ? 

The United States consul at Havre, in classing his accounts for the 
quarter, claims a balance due to him of $58.93. He draws a draft and 
negotiates it through a banker, receiving five francs on the dollar on 
its face. If the franc be reckoned at $1.93, for what amount, in dol¬ 
lars and cents, must the draft be made so that he shall receive the ex¬ 
act equivalent (in francs) of the amount due ? 

$6,654.58 J is the interest on $75,000 for 15 montlis and 7 days, at 
what rate per cent., reckoning 360 days to the year. 

An elastic ball, after striking the ground, rises to ^ of the height 
from which it falls. After striking the ground the third time it rises 3| 
inches. From what height did it fall at first? 

Sound travels at the rate of 1142 feet per second. If a gun be 
tired at a distance of 4J miles, how long after the flash will the sound 
be heard ? 

Two boats row' a race over a straight course 1 mile 995 yards long, 
their rates of speed being 12 miles and llj| miles per hour respect¬ 
ively. Assuming that sound travels at the rate of 1140 feet per second, 
find how much the faster boat will be ahead of the other when the 
sound of the gun fired at starting is heard at the winning post ? 

Thomas Jones is a disbursing officer of the United States. On the 
first of January, 1872, there w'as advanced to him $6,000 ; and on the 
1st of April, 1872, $2,500 ; on the 15th of May, 1872, $1,761; and on 
the first of June, 1872, $550.59. He has made disbursements to the 
amount of $10,156; on $5,000 he is entitled to commission of f per 
cent.; on $3,000 to a commission'of f per cent; and on the remainder 
to a commission of 1 per cent: 

State the account of the United States with Thomas Jones in the 
frame beneath: 


History and. Geor/ra.phy. 

During what war did the battle of Buen a Vista take place. 

Name and describe the four chief rivers of France, telling where 
they rise and into what waters they empty. 

"When and where did General Eobert E. Lee surrender. 

Where is Singapore; Vera Cruz; Barcelona; Prague. 

What is the highest judicial tribunal in the United States. 

Hame in order the bodies of water through which you would pass 
in sailing from Bombay to Saint Petersburg. 

Hame the States and Territories lying on the northern frontier of 
the United States, extending from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean. 

In the following list, state which are sea-ports and which inland 
cities: Boston, Tallahassee, Baton Rouge, Saint Augustine, Hashville, 
Syracuse, and Des Moines. 


— 25 — 


Sheet 9. — Orthograhpy and Punctuation. 

The deliberate expression of liuniaii thought: will allways asume 
A form, suposed to be adaptid, to the Intelegence the tempar the taists 
and the ames; of those to whome it is addressed, he who speaks to an 
Audyence komposed of men of one clas. of one profesion of won party 
or of won sect will, use a narrower vockabulary a more restricted or 
a more sealect dyalect than he who expects to be herd by a more 
varius and komprehensive, sirch and a riter who apeals to a hole 
People who seeks lo convince the understanding or inlict the sympathy’s 
of a nation ; must adopt a dicktion Emplo}^ arguments. And resort to 
illustrations which; shall, in there turn suit the comprehension and 
Awaken the interest of men of every class and every caling, whatever 
theirfore is desired for the ear or the perewsal of what we call the 
inlightened public must be as miscelaneus in its composition as that 
public itself. And it can come, home to the busums of awl only by 
using both the speech which is common too all and somwhat as the 
special vockabulary which is peculiar to each. 

Sheet 10.— Syntax. 

Copy the following sentences and correct such as contain errors in 
s^mtax. ^ 

I sold my horse and buggy for less than it cost. 

The discomfiture and slaughter were very great. 

Neither riches nor honors can satisfy an immortal spirit. 

The Chinese wall is thirty foot high. 

lie was the greatest statesman of the two. 

It cannot be me. 

Did not Mary look most beautifully at the lecture ? 

Prudence and not pomp are the basis of his fame. 

Sheet 11. —Letter and brief. 


War Department. 

(Quartermaster and Surgeon General’s Office.) 
Examination for admission to fill vacancies in clerkships of Class One. 
Sheet 1.— 

Write a letter of about one page in length, addressed to the board 
of examiners, stating the character of your past and present occupation. 

Sheet 2.— 

Correct any errors that may exist in the following sentences : 
Explain the difference between the old and the new plan. 

I intended to have answered when you called. 

The dead and wounded were left on the field. 

Every one must judge of their own situations. 

He would not act thus if he were with them. 







— 26 — 


Sheet 3.— 

Correct the orthography of any of the following words that may 
be spelled incorrectly : 

Iregularity, naration, consientions, seperate, catagory, buisness, 
vigorous, necesary, imediately, briefly, equivilent, debbet, prommisory, 
judgement, goverment, comutasion, rnedecins, allopathey, tryumphent, 
aforsaid, honerable, suplyes, memmorandum, eligible, comisary. 

Sheet 4.— 

Write out, in full, the following, correcting all abbreviations, and 
placing capitals and punctuation where they properly belong: 

office of the depot qr mr ft leavenworth Kansas april 1 1873 sealed 
proposals will be reed at this office until 11 o’clock a. m. Saturday may 
3 1873 for building supts lodges of brick or stone at the ft leavenworth 
and ft scott Kansus natl cemeteries for further inform and plans and 
specifications apply to this office proposals to be endorsed proposals for 
supts lodges and addressed to the undersigned jno g chandler maj and 
qr mr U. S. A. 

Sheet 5.— 

How many dollars make an eagle ? 

How many shillings one pound ? 

How many feet one rod V 
How many quarts one bushel ? 

How many feet one cord ? 

Express in words the following amounts : 

2009001 ; 6.00107; 9807300.026; ||; 725Af; 

Subtract 754.75478 from 9026.8399. 

Divide 12.82561 by 1.505. 

What is the product of J of | of 3 of 15i ? 

(State the result in vulgar and decimal fractions.) 

What is the interest on $378.42 for 1 year 5 months and 3 days, at 
7 per cent? 

A man purchased a house for $10,000 on the following terms ; 
$5,000 in cash; $2,500 in 3 months, and the balance in 6 months. 
What was the cash value of the property, interest being calculated at 
6 per cent.? 

What is a pile of wood, 8 feet long, 7 feet wide, and 5 feet hiffh 
worth at $4.50 per cord ? 

Sheet 7.— 

When bank-stock sells at a discount of 7J per cent.; what amount 
of stock at par value will $3,700 purchase ? 

An army fought two battles. In the first it lost 15 per cent., and 
in the second 20 per cent, of the original number, after which it must¬ 
ered 19,500 men. What was the original scrength, and how manv men 
were lost in each engagement ? 


— 27 — 


What is the cost of each of the following items of a soldier’s ration ? 
12 oz. of pork, at $17.87J per bbl., (200 lbs.) 

1 lb. 6 oz. of hour, at $6.62-| per bbl, (196 lbs.) 

2.4 oz. of beans, at $2.20 per bushel, (60 lbs.) 

1.6 oz. of rice, at $6.75 per 100 pounds. 

4.8 oz. of potatoes, at 95 cents per bushel, (60 lbs.) 

1.6 oz. of coffee, at 22J cents per pound. 

1.4 oz. of sugar, at 6J cents per pound. 

Sheet 9.— 

Name four battles occurring in the war with Great Britain in 1812, 
and four in the war with Mexico. 

Name the first three or four States admitted into the Union of the 
thirteen colonies after the Revolution. 

What were the principal events occurring during President Jefler- 
son’s term of office ? 

Bound the State of which you are a resident, give its capitol and 
two of its principal cities. 

Describe the Missouri River, giving its rise, course of fiowing, 
through what States it passes, and where it empties. 

What are letters of marque and reprisal, and what is a capitation 

tax ? 

Name six of the powers granted to Congress by the Constitution. 
What provisions exist in the Constitution regarding the adjourn¬ 
ment of Congress ? 

Sheet 10.— 

Make a copy of the following rough draught of a letter, 

(This letter being photo-lithographed, it is not practicable to repro¬ 
duce it here.) 

War Department.— No. 2. 

Sheets 1 and 2 same as Treasury examination, except a slight 
change in the figures and numbers. 

Sheet 3.—^An exercise in simple addition, same as given in sheet 3, 
Treasury examination. 

Sheet 4.—Express the answers decimally, and show the operation in 
full in each case ; 

A quartermaster purchased 17 tons of hay, at $10.50 per ton; 
2,570 pounds of corn, at 87J cents per bushel (56 pounds to the bushel;) 
1,956 pounds of oats, at 37t cents per bushel (32 pounds to the bushel;) 
and 10,247 feet of lumber, at $15.62J per thousand feet. What was 
the total cost of the purchase ? 

A disbursing agent I’eceives $11,948.23. He pays out $3,096.48, 
and the residue he disburses to five sub-agents as follows; The first 
receives one-fourth part, and the remainder is equally divided among 
the others. What was the share of each ? (Give the answers to the 
third decimal place.) 


— 28 — 


A commissary of subsistence wishes to purchase an equal quan¬ 
tity of wheat, corn and rye; he pays for the wheat |2.22J a bushel; 
for the corn 98J cents a bushel; and for the rye a bushel. 

How many bushels of each can he buy for $242,979 ? 

Sheet 5.— 

The cash price of beef is 9| cents per pound, and of flour 3f cents 
per pound. One pound and tour ounces of beef, and one pound and 
six ounces of flour are allowed to a ration. How much will 145 rations 
cost at the above rates ? 

A quartermaster bought llj cords of wood at one time, and 24f 
cords at another.. After issuing coi’ds, how much remained ? 

A commissary of subsistence about to change quarters, and being 
compelled to dispose of 113f bushels of wheat, sold f of the same at 
$2J a bushel, and the remainder at $1| a bushel. How much did he 
receive for his wheat ? 

Sheet 6.— 

The total population of four western cities in 1860, was 72,000. • The 
number of inhabitants in the first was 40,000, in the second, 20,000, in 
the third, 8,000, and in the fourth, 4,000. In 1870, the total population 
of the towns had increased 50 per cent., what was the population of 
each town in 1870, all the towns having increased at the same rate ? 

If the premium on gold is 13 J per cent, what amount of gold 
must one sell to pay a note of $100 in currency ? 

What is the interest on $156,000 for 8J months at 6 per cent, a 
year ? 

Sheet 7.— 

John Smith is a disbursing agent of the United States. January 
1, 1872, there is in his hands $13,875.68. February 1, he pays out 
$4,268.75, on wdiich he is entitled to a commission of If per cent. 
March 1, he receives $5,820.31. May 1, he pays out $2,897.50, on 
which he is entitled to a commission of 2J per cent. 

Make a statement of his account in the frame below showing bal¬ 
ance due the United States. (See Sheet 7, Treasury.) 

Sheet 8. —History and Government. 

What French nobleman was actively engaged in our Revolution¬ 
ary war ? 

Who were General Arnold and Major Andre ? 

What was the cause of the war of 1812 ? 

In what year did the war between the U. S. and Mexico begin ? 
What does the writ of habeas corpus authorize an officer to do ? 
What are letters of marque and reprisal ? 

Does the Constitution prohibit Congress passing laws for the estab¬ 
lishment of any religion ? 

What States border on the Gulf of Mexico ? 


— 29 — 

What are the two principal inoiintain-rangas of the United States? 

Bound the State or Territory of which you are a resident, and give 
its capital and principal rivers. 

Sheet 10.— 

Write an account of your life, in the form and style of a letter, 
of not less than one p'age and a half in length, and fold and brief it. 
Sheet 9.— 

Copy the following and correct the orthography and punctuation: 

The intluanse of the nornian Conquest upon the languege of eng- 
land like that of a grate Inundasion wich at first bury’s the face of the 
lanscap under its waters butt, wich at last subciding leves behind it 
the elaments, of new buty and fertillity. its first eftecks was to degraid 
the saxan tong, to the exklusive use of the inferier orders and by, the 
transferrance of estaits ecklesiestical benifices and civil dignaties to 
norman posesors to give the french languege which had begun to pre¬ 
vale at kourt from the time edward The confesser a more complete 
predomenense amonge the hier classes of society, the nativgentry of 
england wer ether driven intoo exsile or, depresed; intoo a stait of de- 
pendance on there conquerer wich habichuatid them to speke his lan- 
gueg. 

Sheet 10.— 

Correct the following sentences: 

He found memoranda and took it home. 

Do not they say, every true believer has the spirit of God in them ? 

Had I known the character of the lecture I would not have went ? 

Neither riches nor fame render a man happy. 

He admired Homer’s works for its beauty. 

He cannot get no employment in town. 

Each man and each woman were particularly alluded to in the 
report of the ofiace. 


Letter and Brief. 

Promotion in Office of Treasurer of the United States, 

Olympia, W. T., January 25, 1875. 

Sir: Being about to engage in the banking business at this place, I 
am desirous of obtaining information on the points mentioned below. 
Will you, therefore, be so kind as to answer the following inquiries in 
a concise and explicit form ? 

1. What is the difference between an advance warrant and a set¬ 
tlement warrant, and between an ordinary covering warrant and a 
repay covering warrant? 

2. With what officers and others may deposits be made to the credit 
of the Treasurer of the United States ? 

3. In what cases is mutilated currency of the United States subject 



— 30 — 


to discount ?” What amount would be paid at the Treasury for five- 
eights of a $10 United States note ? 

4. Is fractional currency a legal tender ? By whom and in what 
amounts is it exchangeable for United States notes ? 

6. On what terms is new fractional currency furnished to banks 
and private individuals? • 

6. By whom and on what terms are the notes ot national banks 
which have failed or have gone into voluntary liquidation redeemable ? 

7. What is the mode of paying interest on registered stock of the 
funded loan of 1881 ? 

8. What is meant by the term ‘‘ called bonds ? ” What kinds of 
bonds may be ‘‘ called,” and by whom, in what manner, and under 
what authority ? 

9. For what purpose are United States bonds deposited with the 
Treasurer in trust for national banks. Do bonds so deposited afibrd 
any security to individual depositors with national banks ? 

10. Within what periods must national banks make their returns 
of semi-annual duty to the Treasurer, and what is the penalty for fail¬ 
ing to make return within the prescribed time ? 

Very .respectfully yours. 

ADAM SMITH. 

Tkeasuker United States. 

Examinations to fill vacancies in any of the Executive Depart¬ 
ments shall be held not only in Washington, but also, when directed 
by the head of the Deparlment in which the vacancy may exist, in the 
several States, either at the Capital or other convenient place. 

The appointment of persons to be employed exclusively in the 
secret service of the Government; also of persons to be employed as 
translators, stenographers, or private secretaries, or to be designated 
for secret service, to fill vacancies in clerkships in any of the Depart¬ 
ments at Washington, may be excepted from the operation of the civil 
service rules. 

When a vacancy occurs in a consular ofiice, of which the lawful 
annual compensation is three thousand dollars or more, it will be filled 
at the discretion of the President, either by the transfer of some person 
already in the service, or by a new appointment, which may be excepted 
from the operation of the rules. But if the vacancy occurs in an ofiice 
of which the lawful annual compensation, by salary or fees, is more 
than one thousand dollars and less than three thousand dollars, and it 
is not filled by transfer, applications will be addressed to the Secretary 
of State, inclosing proper certificates of character, responsibility and 
capacity, and the Secretary will notify the applicant who upon investi¬ 
gation appears to be most suitable and competent, to attend for exam¬ 
ination, and if he shall be found qualified he will be nominated. 

When a vacancy occurs in the ofiice of Postmaster in cities having 
a population of twenty thousand or more, the Postmaster General shall 


— 31 — 


\ 

ascertain if any of the subordinates in such office are suitable persons 
qualified to discharge efficiently the duties of postmaster, and if such 
are found he shall certify to the President the name or names of those 
subordinates, not exceeding three in number, who, in his judgment, 
are best fitted for the position; from which list the President will make 
the nomination to fill the vacancy. Vacancies occurring in the clerk¬ 
ships in said office will be filled in accordance with civil service rules. 

When a vacancy occurs in the office of Postmaster of a class not 
otherwise provided for, applications for the position from any subor¬ 
dinate or subordinates in the office, or from other persons residing within 
the delivery of the office, may be addressed to the Postmaster General, 
inclosing proper certificates of character, responsibility and capacity, 
and the appointment will be given to the person certified by the Board 
of Examiners as being most suitable and best qualified to fill the posi¬ 
tion. Special Agents of the Post Office Department shall be appointed 
by the Postmaster General at discretion, from persons already in the 
postal service, or other applicants found qualified under the rules. 

Applications for appointments in the office of Kegister or Keceiver 
of the Land Office, or of Pension Agent located in any of the several 
States, must be addressed to the Secretary of the Interior, Washington, 
D. C., inclosing proper certificates of character, &c. From the list of 
applicants, certified by the Board of Examiners as in every way quali¬ 
fied, nominations will be made. For positions in the office ,of United 
States Marshal, applications in writing from residents in the district in 
which the same may be located, must be addressed to the Attorney 
General of the United States, Washington, D. C., inclosing proper cer¬ 
tificates of character, responsibility and capacity. Such vacancies will 
be filled by the appointment of those only who have been certified by 
the board as fully qualified. 

Vacancies occurring in offices in the several Territories, excepting 
those, of Judges, Indian Agents and Superintendents, will be filled by 
the appointment of competant and suitable persons domiciled in the 
Territory in which the vacancy occurs, if any such are found. 






— 82 — 


(Misplaced through Error.) 

Promotions. 

In the competative examinations for promotion in, the various 
Departments, the questions propounded will be found to be almost 
identical with the foregoing, with the exception that Sheet Ko. 11 
necessitates the answering of certain technical questions, directly relat¬ 
ing to the Office or Bureau in which the candidate is employed. The 
answers must be given in the form of a letter, and neatly folded and 
briefed. 

The following examples it is deemed will suffice: 

Treasury Department, 
Washington, July 8, 187(3. 

Sir : I have the honor to request that you will furnish me with 
the following information: 

1. What duties are assigned by law to the Second Auditor of the 
Treasury ? 

2. Into what Divisions is his Bureau divided ? 

3. State briefly the work assigned to each Division. 

4. In what cases is the mother entitled to bounty and arrears of 
pay in preference to the father ? 

5. What is the flrst duty of an examiner upon receiving a claim 
for examination ? 

6. Give a general statement of the mode of stating a paymaster’s 
account. 

7. What is the difierence between personal items belonging to 
appropriation accounts ? 

8. Through what bureaus of the War Department are property 
returns received ? 

9. State the method of examining these returns. 

Very respectfully, 

LOT M. MOEKELL, Secretary, 

Hon. E. B. French, 

Second Auditor of the Treasury. 

Sheet 11.—Of competitive examination in 4th Auditor’s Office, Treas¬ 
ury Department. 

“ Answer the following inquiries seriatum, in the form and style of 
a letter to the Board of Examiners, and fold and brief your reply: 

1. Into how many divisions is the Fourth Auditor’s office divided ? 
Give their names and describe the duties pertaining to each division. 

2. Describe an allotment in detail. 

3. What becomes of a paymaster’s account after it is settled in 
that office ? 

4. What is a reconciling statement ? 


— 33 


Sheet 12. —Competitive examination for promotion in office of the 
Commissioner of Customs. 

Answer the following inquiries seriatim in the form and style of a 
letter to the Board of Examiners, and fold and brief your reply : 

1. What is a port of entry ? 

2. What is a port of delivery ? 

3. How long can goods remain in bonded warehouse ? 

4. What is done with them at the expiration of that time V 

5. How long a time is generally allowed for a vessel to unlode ? 

6. What is done with goods remaining on board at the expiration 
of that time ? 

7. What additional charge is made on goods remaining more than 
one year in warehouse ? 


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